2024-2025 Tennessee Basketball Team Discussion

#329
#329
It’s hard to find much to be critical of with Tennessee’s basketball team right now. The Vols are out of the gate with the best start in school history in terms of wins/losses at 8-0 and that’s not an empty record.

Tennessee is playing some great basketball, especially at this point of the season. And yes—WE KEEP SAYING IT—it’s really impressive that they’re doing it with three veteran transfers being worked into the starting line-up and relied on heavily.

We’ve thrown a bunch of numbers out there lately about where the Vols are statistically in a bunch of different categories. No one is surprised about the defensive numbers, that’s been happening for years.

But Tennessee’s offensive numbers in terms of efficiency and simple shooting percentage are all in the upper crust of college basketball.

Rick Barnes and his staff deserve credit for meshing this group together so quickly. Behind the scenes the staff will tell you that Zakai Zeigler and Jahmai Mashack both deserve a ton of that credit.

The senior duo was praised for not only providing a welcoming environment for the newcomers, but also for being the kind of peer leaders not only set and maintain the standards of this program but get others to live up to that as well.

Look around college basketball, in this age of the transfer portal and NIL, blending new faces into an existing infrastructure that’s already been highly successful while also dealing with the egos of young men can be like conducting a three ring circus.

Barnes and his staff have adjusted as well as anyone in college basketball to the times when you look at the success of last year’s group and what’s happened so far this season.

One of the more promising developments on the team in the last couple of weeks has been Darlinstone Dubar popping up and making some contributions after not playing in the first couple of weeks of the season while he dealt with some off-the-court, personal issues.

With JP Estrella lost for the year getting some rotational minutes out of Dubar at the four would be a nice boost for this squad.

That is definitely still the case, but we strongly suspect after talking with some people that the seven minutes he played against Syracuse will be used as a teaching tool with him regarding what this program is about.

Two examples. Dubar checked in with 8:04 left in the first half on Tuesday, launched and missed a three :56 later and was subbed out at the next dead ball.

Dubar wouldn’t return to the floor in the blowout until the 5:03 mark after that. Then he closed the game by driving for and making a lay-up right at the buzzer with Tennessee leading 94-70.

Not a Rick Barnes kind of move.

Neither of those things are huge transgressions. Not in the least. But those are two things that a guy battling to just to get on the court should learn from.

Speaking of that SEC/ACC Challenge, the powers that be had initially hoped that Tennessee would accept a road game in the event, even though they traveled to North Carolina last year. (Teams are not expected to play away games the event in consecutive years)

Our understanding is that Tennessee’s response was that they would go on the road this year, but if they did that, then two ACC opponents of the caliber of UNC and Duke would come to Knoxville in the following two years in the event. Tennessee obviously played at home.
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-VQ
 
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#334
#334
Vols All Day said:
Dubar just doesn't seem like a good fit. Barnes had a discussion with him after the Austin Peay game about how to end the game.
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Barnes didn’t like how he closed out the Syracuse and UT-M games either. I hope that it’s something that Dubar hadn’t figured out due to lack of playing time rather than going rogue. Barnes was really pissed at the end of UT-M. At the end of Syracuse CRB seemed to just say something to him and dropped it rather quickly.
 
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#335
#335
Vols All Day said:
Dubar just doesn't seem like a good fit. Barnes had a discussion with him after the Austin Peay game about how to end the game.
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That seems a bit premature.

"With JP Estrella lost for the year getting some rotational minutes out of Dubar at the four would be a nice boost for this squad.

That is definitely still the case, but we strongly suspect after talking with some people that the seven minutes he played against Syracuse will be used as a teaching tool with him regarding what this program is about."

Seems like VQ people think he's still very much part of the plans and a fit.

Edit: he also didn't play against Austin Peay, think you meant UT-M.
 
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#336
#336
Really good comments from Lanier’s old HC. Really big praise.


Hope we can keep those relationships with their coach. They have a couple of really good younger players.


PG: Jaylen Smith (Soph)
11.9ppg / 2.4rpg / 5.7apg 43% FG
- 12 points, 2 rebounds, 6 assist against Neb
- 7 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assist against UGA
- 15 points, 5 rebounds, 6 assist against GT
- 16 points and 3 assist against USCjr



F: Josh Harris (Fr)
15.8ppg / 7.6rpg / 0.7apg / 1.0spg 63% FG
- 12 points and 6 rebounds against UGA
- 22 points and 7 rebounds against GT
 
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#337
#337
Personally, I’ve got no problem with that layup. If the other team wants to try and dunk on someone when we’ve stopped playing defense because it’s over they better get back on D if they don’t want me to score.

It’s one thing for them to take a lackadaisical jumper at the buzzer or end of the shot clock. Totally different thing to drive the lane for a dunk. Cuse brought it upon themselves imo.
 
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#341
#341
VolsNetClippers2025 said:
That seems a bit premature.

"With JP Estrella lost for the year getting some rotational minutes out of Dubar at the four would be a nice boost for this squad.

That is definitely still the case, but we strongly suspect after talking with some people that the seven minutes he played against Syracuse will be used as a teaching tool with him regarding what this program is about."

Seems like VQ people think he's still very much part of the plans and a fit.

Edit: he also didn't play against Austin Peay, think you meant UT-M.
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Yeah if they are shelving him or something, they wouldn't frame it as a "teaching tool."
 
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